<p>Does anybody have a beloved career? I mean a job where you get up every morning and can’t wait to get to work. I mean a job that you would love to do even if it didn’t pay very well. What makes these jobs so wonderful to you? So many posts from students worry about the earning potential of a particular major, and I’m wondering if any adults out there derive alot of non-monetary satisfaction from their chosen work.</p>
<p>I really like many aspects of my job (biotech research and development). I get to work with some very smart people. And it’s pretty cool when you come up with something and realize that, until you publish, you and your team are probably the only people in the world who know these facts. But I can’t say that I always jump out of bed in the morniing and greet the new day with a song. Pretty much every job has some aspects you won’t like. In my case it’s some of the necessities of working in the corporate world: committee meetings, developing and administering budgets, writing documents and reports, etc. Overall, though, I like it a lot more than I dislike it.</p>
<p>I teach English–and I love it. I suppose I could list the things I really like about it, but I think it comes down to the fact that it just feels right and natural and satisfying–in a rich, soulful sort of way. I feel most like myself–my best self–when I’m teaching and working with students. The proof (and the irony) is that I seem to forget about myself entirely.</p>
<p>spoonyj, what grades do you teach?</p>
<p>I’m a dentist in solo practice and I love my work. I am in control of my destiny, can set my own hours, vacation schedule, etc. The field is constantly changing and I get to implement cool new technology and techniques as I see fit. I have surrounded myself with people I enjoy working with and I believe they like their jobs. Although most people are fearful to go to the dentist, I get much gratitude and appreciation from the patients I help. </p>
<p>No, I don’t necessarily jump out of bed Monday morning raring to go, but once I get into the office, I fall into a comfortable groove. I’ll also be honest and say I probably wouldn’t feel as good about my profession if I wasn’t well compensated. There are stresses involved with running a business and treating patients so I definitely earn my keep. I believe part of having a great career is having the time & means to enjoy your leisure time and provide for your family.</p>
<p>High school, believe it or not. But I’m lucky–I get to work with wonderful students and bright colleagues in a school that gives me the freedom to do what I want.</p>
<p>For a couple of years I worked with the Federal Office for Victims of Crime in the US Department of Justice.I worked with victims of Federal crimes and I dealt with the victim-witness coordinators in the US Attorneys Offices. I had a small pot of money to distribute to directly help Federal crime victims and their families based on requests from the USAOs. Everyday I went to work I knew that I might make a difference in someone’s life.</p>
<p>I really enjoy my work in commercial real estate finance. I can drive anywhere in the city and see a poject I helped to get developed. Most of them even made a little money.</p>
<p>This isn’t really a career, but the job I had this past year at college was awesome. I loved it. I only worked part time on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays… but it was great. I worked with my friend and his dad, and we had five or six employees in other states. Every day I’d be on the phone with people from around the United States (we have customers everywhere in florida,texas, indiana, etc), and basically took care of everything involved with running the business. Everything from shipping out orders, or ordering inventory from our suppliers… to taking care of payments and other accounting issues. I also took care of random office work, organizing, and when we’d get in new lines of clothes i’d get to work with that kind of stuff. It was an all around awesome job, and it was really hard to leave it… but there wasn’t enough work for me to be full time after I graduated. My boss said that if his company continues to grow he’d love to bring me back in a few years as his vice president or something… so we’ll see :)</p>
<p>I work as a firefighter and have 30 years on the job so I could have retired, but I’m still there. I guess that says something.</p>
<p>So it’s obvious here that a lot of very different careers can be “beloved”.</p>
<p>My job is so boring I sometimes want to take a swan dive into the toilet bowl, but its good that some people are having fun with their jobs.</p>
<p>I am a serial careerist. I love what I do for 5-10 years and then I get sick of it or my life changes and I try something else.</p>
<p>-development executive for director/later for film production company
-screenwriter
-Bradley childbirth education teacher
-Realtor</p>
<p>I loved all these jobs in different ways. </p>
<p>Film biz slave-- met lots of cool famous people & got invited to opening nights, etc. (really fun when you are 25)</p>
<p>Screenwriter-- creatively very fulfilling, lots of fun, good $-- but quite solitary and I would get into a zone and not emerge for days</p>
<p>Realtor-- excellent $ and complete autonomy over your life/schedule but lots of last minute hectic “must do’s” that can’t be predicted</p>
<p>The least money was the most fun (childbirth educator) because I got to meet people in the most exciting, intense, joyful, scary transitional period of life and help them have beautiful birth experiences. When I retire from paid work I would love to go back to this…</p>
<p>Great question, lfk725. I have always thought that the greatest gift one could give oneself is just what you described - “a job where you get up every morning and can’t wait to get to work. I mean a job that you would love to do even if it didn’t pay.” Even with hindsight, I am not totally sure what this job would have been for me.</p>
<p>Although I have never had teaching as my primary job, I can say that on those days when I teach (either Continuing Education in my field or volunteer teaching at the juvenile detention facility,) those are the days when I “jump out of bed with a song,” feel totally engaged while I’m doing it, and perfectly spent when I’m done. The obvious conclusion is that I should have entered the profession of teaching, but I wonder if doing it for a living and the frustrations of how that profession is treated would have ruined it or not.</p>
<p>I am presently a visiting nurse - RN - actually I was born to be a nurse - so a lifetime career I would say - I have been involved in the health care field almost all of my life in some way - have had many very interesting positions - haha could actually write a book about my adventures in nursing!!! - and it could even be a comedy too - haha.</p>
<p>Seriously tho - Yes - I love what I do - and yes I could probably make more $$ at my profession if I chose to travel to the big city - BUT… my job gives me personal satisfaction … my job brings me into peoples homes - and sometimes I am the only person they may see or speak to for several days - the best thing about what I do - I know that I make a difference - in their lives - my own life and in the lives of my family as well. I have it all!!!</p>
<p>I love my work but one of the things I love the most about it is that I hardly ever have to get up early in the morning. 
I rarely do much before noon…</p>
<p>For me it was a research position on a college campus (top 25). I’ve worked in lots of environments, but NOTHING beats a college campus (especially when you’re in your twenties). The pay was terrible, but I loved my job and the whole campus life. I also taught one class - three hours a week - and enjoyed that immensely. I left that job when the research money ended and went to a research job with the Supreme Court in Washington, DC. I also LOVED that job. My office was in the DC District Court just below Judge John Sirica’s and we got to watch a parade of the Watergate infamous waltz through the door (that really dates me!). If you look at almost any of the interviews on the courthouse steps from that time, you’ll see my office window right behind them.</p>
<p>I teach, run a library, make films with children, books, work with writing, interact with ages 3 to 19. I help set up proms, travel to conferences, and for the most part enjoy every day. Some are better than others…but having the freedom to be creative, run my own shop is what I love. To interact with children of different ages is what I love. To travel is what I love. I could use a bit more pay, but it has been a good life. My son graduated today and I am now free to move somewhere else. Maybe. Teaching overseas is enjoyable.</p>
<p>Some of these jobs sound great, but it seems that some also miss what I think was the gist of the OP … that they should represent jobs where you would still pursue them even if you had to accept the standard of living that is normally associated with the job. In other words, it might be easy for an artist/musician/social worker to say that they love their job when they have a spouse who is a corporate lawyer who brings home $250K per year. But, if you were the sole wage earner, or if your spouse also made exactly the same amount of money as you, would you still consider your career to be “beloved”?</p>
<p>One note to audiophile (who clearly meets the above test), do you get a similar feeling from other dentists that they are as happy in their careers? I must admit that when I walk into my dentist’s office that it seems to be the happiest place on earth, with everyone humming and singing. You don’t think that it is a career that attracts sadists do you? ;)</p>
<p>fundingfather (great handle, I know how you feel),</p>
<p>I know plenty of dentists who are miserable, and many who are just in it for the $$$. The ones who enjoy it are the ones I typically see at advanced courses & high level meetings-constantly learning, excited to try the latest things to help their patients and practice. That probably represents <20% of the profession.</p>
<p>I know (at least I hope) your second question was tongue-in-cheek. I can honestly say that most dentists I know will do everything possible to avoid causing their patients any pain. I wish my personal trainer felt that way (still sore from this morning’s workout!)</p>